STANFORD, Calif. - The 11th-ranked Stanford Cardinal posted the best round of Day Two and charged into fifth place with an even-par 284 at the NCAA Women's Golf West Regional at the Stanford Golf Course on Friday.

Mariah Stackhouse led the way with a two-under-par 69 with the freshman getting as low as five-under before still settling in a tie for the day's second-best individual round.

"I was determined to get myself back to even par today, meaning that I had to be at least 4-under on this round," Stackhouse said. "On the front nine, I gave myself a goal of no less than 3-under par. I think that focus and intensity really helped me drain the birdie putts I left for myself on those holes."

Stackhouse was five under with three holes to go, but bogeys on the 16 and 18 pushed her back three strokes.

"I think golf happened on 16 and 18," Stackhouse continued. "They are both holes that you have to play smart, and I wasn't accurate on my approach shots on either of the two holes. Luckily, I was already 5-under at that point so the 3-over finish didn't hurt me too much."

Kent State's Jennifer Ha claimed the best round with a three-under-par 68 thanks to a front nine round that included two birdies and an eagle on the 479-yard par-5 seventh hole.

Purdue (291-286-577) narrowly holds a first place lead over Vanderbilt (289-289-578) heading into Day Three while USC (290-289-579) and South Carolina (296-285-581) sit ahead of the Cardinal (301-284-585). Baylor (295-291-586), Oregon (292-297-589) and Georgia (296-299-595) round out the top eight while Kent State (302-294-596) and Arizona (300-298-598) are both in position to challenge for the right to advance to the 2013 championship.

"We were ready to compete today," said Anne Walker, Stanford's Margot and Mitch Milias Director of Women's Golf. "We were extremely disappointed in our performance yesterday and determined to come back today."

Only the top eight schools advance to championship play along with the top two individual qualifiers from schools that do not advance.

While Stackhouse improved six shots over her first day of the regionals, the day's biggest jump for the Cardinal was supplied by Sally Watson, who improved seven shots and finished three-over-par at 74. Mariko Tumangan was also steady, turning in a one-over-par 70.

Stanford's four low-scorers helped propel the team to a 17-shot improvement over Day One to qualify as the tournament field's biggest improvement. UNLV (310-296-609) was 14 shots better than Thursday as the Runnin' Rebels moved into 16th place.